On Wednesday, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (Committee) held a markup for S. 3591, the America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2020 (AWIA 2020) and S. 3590, the Drinking Water Infrastructure Act of 2020. The legislation as amended passed the Committee by a vote of 21 to 0. AWIA 2020 provides roughly $17 billion in new federal authorizations to invest in US infrastructure projects across the country. It also sets a two-year goal for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to complete its feasibility studies for potential projects. The Drinking Water Infrastructure Act of 2020 reauthorizes Safe Drinking Water Act (S.1251) programs that support drinking water infrastructure and provide resources and technical assistance to communities facing critical drinking water needs.
The two measures are the latest infrastructure-related bills to be reported out of the Committee following the surface transportation bill (S. 2302), which was reported favorably by the committee in July. Together, the three bills represent the Senate’s answer to President Trump’s call for broad infrastructure reform. While President Trump and Speaker Pelosi have pushed for infrastructure investments to be included in the next coronavirus relief package, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) has said he does not believe it is appropriate to use the pandemic to pay for infrastructure.
Click here to view statements from Committee Chairman John Barrasso (R-Wyoming) and Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Delaware) on the Committee’s passage of the legislation.